I've got a very large basement room (almost 50' long and 30' wide) that contains my home theater at one end, so I've been looking for some big speakers, and I think the Klipsch RF-7 will fit the bill. I found a pair of classic RF-7 speakers that are a bit rough cosmetically, although they are supposed to be fully functional. One of the reasons I settled on the Klipsch Reference series is because I want speakers that not only sound good, but also look good. So my question is, how tough would it be to resurface the face of these speakers?

It looks like the face has some sort of vinyl or other veneer, since it seems to be peeling off. Could I remove the wrap, and apply a new veneer myself? Or does the rounded edge make that a difficult prospect?

Would my best bet be to take the face off, take the speakers out, and take it to a cabinet guy to have it resurfaced?

Any chance the dent on the dust cap could be popped out? Or are there probably going to be creases in the cap?

Here are some pictures (sorry for the low quality, but that's what he sent me).

So is this set of RF-7's hopeless? Regardless of how low the price is, should I avoid them if I want a speaker that both sounds great and looks nice?

The dust cap can easily be popped out. The cosmetic condition is so poor I would run from these...fast. I would not trust they are functioning well either. Not sure how that kind of damage occurs, but I would steer clear.

If (and a big IF) they are functioning perfectly they might be worth $500. I base this statement only on the fact that a pair of these (not the II model) apparently sold in ebay in May for $1350.

But I would have to hear them first. I would also want an explanation of the damage. I do not understand how that could occur just sitting in someone's living room. It looks as if the bottom woofer was removed (due to failure?) and they tried a non-original replacement with a round (instead of pincushion) frame.

A modern vinyl film such as 3M DI-NOC would conform (with a heat gun) to that panel and probably could be trimmed neatly where it joins the wood. Or you could sand it and spray paint it flat black. Maybe even spray it with Plasti-dip. Drivers have to be removed in both cases before refinishing.

Agreed - these are really rough and definitely looks like someone pulled the speakers for some reason and tried replacing them with something non-stock based on the weird ring wear around the woofers. I wouldn't pay any amount of money for those personally.

I'm not sure about the six dots. The speakers are about an hour and a half drive from me, so I wasn't going to make the drive to inspect them until I got the seller to agree on a price that I could live with, even if they ended up just basically being project speakers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hoffdano

Or you could sand it and spray paint it flat black. Maybe even spray it with Plasti-dip. Drivers have to be removed in both cases before refinishing.

I wasn't sure about being able to sand and paint the face. Is that material MDF? Does it sand and paint smooth just look real wood? I thought it might be too rough and absorbent, but I admit I've never worked with MDF, so I'm basing that assumption on what it's like working with particle board.

Also, is sanding the best option to remove the current coating? It looks like something that peels off, but I wonder if the surface would get damaged peeling it off (as in, chunks coming off with the black material).

MDF finishes very well. It sands nicely and is easy to paint. As for removing that plastic......I would probably first see if it would peel. If not, a heat gun with a wide putty knife would probably remove most of it. Sand and resurface as little as required to smooth it out before refinishing.

Since you know they tried to replace the woofer with a non original part, I am uneasy that they knew anything about what they were doing. Who knows if they didn't screw up the crossover inside? Maybe the woofer we see in the pic with the dented dustcap doesn't actually work? Maybe the replacement didn't work so they just reinstalled the original!